University College London

Civil & Environmental Engineering

Earthquake Engineering

Dr Tiziana Rossetto
Earthquake Engineering

University College London

Civil & Environmental Engineering

Introduction
In the past 3 centuries over 3 million people have died
due to earthquakes and earthquake related disasters.
The economic losses estimated for the period 1929-1950
are in excess of US$10 billion.
2/3 of the earths crust is seismically active, which means
that about 1,000,000,000 people are living in areas of
the world that are prone to earthquakes.

Earthquake Engineering

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Introduction
For more developed countries the economic loss due to
an earthquake can be enormous even if the death toll is
fairly low (Coburn and Spence 1992):
e.g. Kobe Earthquake (Ms 7.0, Japan, 1995) killed
5,420 people but caused US$ 150 billion economic loss

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cost of
damage per
fatality

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Introduction
For more developed countries the economic loss due to
an earthquake can be enormous even if the death toll is
fairly low (Coburn and Spence 1992):
e.g. Kobe Earthquake (Ms 7.0, Japan, 1995) killed
5,420 people but caused US$ 150 billion economic loss
But cost is relative:
e.g. Managua earthquake (Ms 6.1, Nicaragua, 1972),
caused 10,000 deaths and US$ 2 billion economic loss.
..but This loss = 40% of GNP
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Introduction
What do we know?
Earthquakes cannot be prevented nor accurately
predicted.
It is not ground shaking itself that causes life and
economic loss but the collapse or damage of buildings
and infrastructure that are too weak to resist the ground
shaking.

Earthquake Engineering

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What is Earthquake Engineering?

The application of civil engineering to

reduce life and economic losses due to
earthquakes,
(i.e to mitigate seismic risk)

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What is Seismic Risk from the

engineers perspective?
the probability of losses occurring due to
earthquakes within the lifetime of a
structure; these losses can include
human lives, social and economic
disruption as well as material damage.

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What is Seismic Risk?

RISK = SEISMIC HAZARD x VULNERABILITY

Earthquake Engineering

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Civil & Environmental Engineering

What is Seismic Risk?

RISK = SEISMIC HAZARD x VULNERABILITY

Probability of a potentially damaging
earthquake effect occurring at the site of
planned construction within its design life.
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What earthquake effects cause damage?

Ground shaking

Bhuj E/q, India 2001

Loma Prieta, CA 1989

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What earthquake effects cause damage?

Ground shaking

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What earthquake effects cause damage?

Ground shaking
Surface rupture

Chi Chi E/q, Taiwan

Hector Mines E/q, USA

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What earthquake effects cause damage?

Ground shaking
Surface rupture
Landslides

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What earthquake effects cause damage?

Ground shaking
Surface rupture
Landslides
Liquefaction

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What earthquake effects cause

damage?
Ground shaking
Surface rupture
Landslides
Liquefaction

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What earthquake effects cause damage?

Ground shaking
Surface rupture
Landslides
Liquefaction
Tsunamis

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What is Seismic Risk?

is the probability of the occurrence of
damage in a building when exposed to a
particular earthquake effect.

RISK = SEISMIC HAZARD x VULNERABILITY

Probability of a potentially damaging
earthquake effect occurring at the site of
planned construction within its design life.
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What is Seismic Risk?

DETERMINED BY MAN: CAN BE
REDUCED THROUGH SEISMIC
DESIGN

RISK = SEISMIC HAZARD x VULNERABILITY

DETERMINED BY NATURE:
CANNOT BE REDUCED

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Seismic Hazard and Seismic Design

Design Problem: An earthquake usually constitutes the
most severe loading to which most civil engineering
structures might possibly be subjected, and yet in most
parts of the world, even those that are highly seismic, there
is a possibility that an earthquake may not occur during the
life of the structure.
Note: Lateral loads imposed by winds = 1-3% of building weight.
Lateral loads due to earthquakes = 25-30% of building weight.

Earthquake Engineering

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Seismic Hazard and Seismic Design

Design Problem: An earthquake usually constitutes the
most severe loading to which most civil engineering
structures might possibly be subjected, and yet in most
parts of the world, even those that are highly seismic, there
is a possibility that an earthquake may not occur during the
life of the structure.
Assessment Problem: Most buildings that exist have not
been designed to seismic codes. Can they withstand the
type of earthquake that might happen in their location?
What will be the damage incurred if an earthquake does
occur?
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Seismic Hazard and Seismic Design

Hence, engineers require seismic hazard
assessments to provide not only a description of
the likely seismic loads (ground shaking) to be
experienced by an engineering structure, but also
to attach probabilities of occurrence to these
earthquake loads.

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How do earthquake measurements

translate into earthquake design loads?
Seismograms can be used directly as input to complicated
dynamic inelastic time history finite element analyses of
important buildings.

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How do earthquake measurements

translate into earthquake design loads?
Seismograms can be used directly as input to complicated
dynamic inelastic time history finite element analyses of
important buildings.

Earthquake Engineering

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How do earthquake measurements

translate into earthquake design loads?
Seismograms used directly as input to complicated
dynamic inelastic time history finite element analyses of
important buildings.
Earthquake Acceleration Spectra and Peak Ground
Acceleration.
Spectral modal analysis methods
Equivalent lateral force methods

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Computation of Elastic Response

Spectrum
Plot maximum
response acceleration
vs fundamental period
of SDOF

Single degree
of freedom
systems
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Elastic and Inelastic Spectra

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Design Spectra (EC8)

~2.5.ag

Shape will be different

for different soil
conditions. i.e. site
amplification effects are
considered

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Code-type zonation map

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T1

T2

T3

T2 T1
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Equivalent Lateral Load

V = C.W ( ~ F=m.a)

Sa (T1 )
C=
. I . S .q
g

I = Importance factor
Sa(T1) = spectral acceleration
for fundamental period, includes
site effects
q = behaviour factor, represents
structures ability to dissipate energy

V
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Conventional Seismic Design

Normal building life assumed to = 50years
Ultimate limit state design: Design a building to resist an
earthquake with a return period of 475yrs (i.e. the design
loads will have a 10% probability of being exceeded in the
structures life).
If a structure is very important (i.e. the consequences of its
damage are severe) these loads will be increased: e.g.
Nuclear structures designed to resist a 10,000 year return
period event.
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Conventional Seismic Design

Normal building life assumed to = 50years
Ultimate limit state design: Design a building to resist an
earthquake with a return period of 475yrs (i.e. the design
loads will have a 10% probability of being exceeded in the
structures life).
If we design for the seismic loads to be resisted by
the building without damage (i.e. for the building to
react elastically) the cost of construction would be
prohibitive
So we design buildings to be damaged under
earthquake loading
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Designing for Controlled Damage

We design buildings to be damaged and react inelastically:
meaning they dissipate the same energy, but will undergo
greater deformation during the event
Force (P)

Pe
Equal Energy
Rule
Pi
Displacement ()

u
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Designing for Controlled Damage

We design buildings to be damaged and react inelastically:
meaning they dissipate the same energy, but will undergo
greater deformation during the event
The location of the damaged areas is controlled to avoid
catastrophic failure.

Simple design rules and

capacity design

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Simple Design Criteria

Choose an adequate lateral load resisting system

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Adequate Lateral Load Resisting Systems

Moment resisting
frame:
RC up to 5 floors

Concentrically
braced frame

Steel up to 2 floors

fuse

Eccentrically
braced frames

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Simple Design Criteria

Choose an adequate lateral load resisting system
Maintain regularity in plan and elevation (of stiffness and
mass distribution)

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Regularity in Plan

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Regularity in Elevation

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Regularity in Elevation

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Regularity in Elevation

Mass
Irregularity

Stiffness
Irregularity
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Soft-storey Failure

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Soft-storey Failure

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Soft-storey Failure

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Simple Design Criteria

Choose an adequate lateral load resisting system
Maintain regularity in plan and elevation (of stiffness and
mass distribution)
Ensure connection between structural elements
Connecting and anchoring of reinforcement
Using appropriate materials

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Poor Connection

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Premature shear failure through

inappropriate detailing

Fukae Viaduct, Kobe 1995

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Premature shear failure through

inappropriate detailing

Fukae Viaduct, Kobe 1995

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Poor Connection

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Simple Design Criteria

Choose an adequate lateral load resisting system
Maintain regularity in plan and elevation (of stiffness and
mass distribution)
Ensure connection between structural elements
Avoid designing in locations of stress concentration

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Local Stress Points

Short
column

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Short Column Failure

Short
column

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Simple Design Criteria

Choose an adequate lateral load resisting system
Maintain regularity in plan and elevation (of stiffness and
mass distribution)
Ensure connection between structural elements
Avoid designing in locations of stress concentration
Consider dynamic response in determining spacing
between buildings, so as to avoid pounding

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Pounding

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Pounding

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Simple Design Criteria

Choose an adequate lateral load resisting system
Maintain regularity in plan and elevation (of stiffness and
mass distribution)
Ensure connection between structural elements
Avoid designing in locations of stress concentration
Consider dynamic response in determining spacing
between buildings, so as to avoid pounding
Adopt capacity design concepts to control the failure
mode

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Capacity Design

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Bad Design

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Bad Design

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Bad Design

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Capacity Design

Earthquake Engineering

University College London

Civil & Environmental Engineering

Simple Design Criteria

Choose an adequate lateral load resisting system
Maintain regularity in plan and elevation (of stiffness and
mass distribution)
Ensure connection between structural elements
Avoid designing in locations of stress concentration
Consider dynamic response in determining spacing
between buildings, so as to avoid pounding
Adopt capacity design concepts to control the failure
mode
Be aware of damage potential on non-structural elements
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Damage due to Non-Structural

Elements

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Base-Isolation

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Base-Isolation

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Final Remarks
Damage to buildings is the greatest cause of life loss, direct
damage and business interruption in an earthquake.
New buildings should be designed considering earthquake
loading with the consequence of their damage in mind
during the design process.
Assess our existing structures for their earthquake
resistance
Predict the likely loss and intervene with structural
strengthening if the risk is too high.
Earthquake Engineering

University College London

Civil & Environmental Engineering

Evening Seminar
7th February 2006 at 6pm

The October 8, Pakistan Earthquake:

Effects and Relief
Presentation by EEFIT Team and Oxfam
Venue: Chadwick Lecture Theatre, Dept of Civil and
Environmental Engineering, UCL
Open to All
Register your interest with me: [email protected]
Earthquake Engineering